Trump vows to ‘permanently pause’ migration from ‘third world countries’ after National Guard shooting
President Donald Trump said he would “permanently suspend” all immigration from what he called “third world countries” and demanded a “reverse migration” program as he intensified his rhetoric following the National Guard shooting in Washington, DC.
Trump provided few details as he disparaged and promised to deport millions of migrants in the United States, in a lengthy social media post at the end of Thanksgiving, hours after confirming the death of National Guardsman Sarah Beckstrom, 20, in the shooting.
Officials said Wednesday’s attack on two soldiers was carried out by an Afghan national who worked with a CIA-backed group during Afghanistan’s long war. The incident served as a catalyst for Trump to escalate his anti-immigration rhetoric into promises that could likely face legal challenges if enacted and further undermine America’s global standing as a welcoming nation for immigrants.
“I will permanently suspend migration from all third world countries to allow the American system to fully recover, I will end Biden’s millions of illegal admissions, including those signed by Sleepy Joe Biden’s Autopen, and I will deport anyone who is not a net asset to the United States,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
It is unclear exactly which countries he was referring to, with the wording being used in the past to refer to poorer nations.
The comments drew sharp criticism from two United Nations agencies, which on Friday urged the United States to continue accepting asylum seekers.
The president also threatened to “end all federal benefits and subsidies provided to noncitizens of our country” and “denaturalize migrants who undermine homeland security.”
In remarks that will worry migrant and civil liberties groups, Trump said the government would deport any foreign national “incompatible with Western civilization.”
He added: “Only REVERSE MIGRATION can completely remedy this situation. »
The Trump administration also said Thursday that the government would review the status of green card holders from 19 countries of “concern,” including Afghanistan.
In a later message, Trump said “hundreds of thousands” of Somali migrants were “completely taking over the once great state of Minnesota.”
Trump has previously threatened action against Somalis and said last week he would end temporary protected status — which prevents deportations to dangerous countries — for Somali migrants in Minnesota, many of whom fled a brutal civil war in the East African country.
It’s unclear how many people it would affect, but a report presented to Congress in August puts the number of people covered by the program nationwide at 705. The president also attacked Minnesota Gov. Tim Walk, calling him a “retarded” and said that Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., born in Somalia, “probably entered the United States illegally” and comes from a “decadent, backward, crime-ridden nation.”
Trump’s threats, if implemented through law or executive orders, will likely be challenged in court. During his first term, Trump banned nationals of several predominantly Muslim countries in the Middle East and Africa from entering the United States. This was contested, but the Supreme Court ultimately ruled 5-4 in favor of the legality of the ban.
Migrant advocacy groups called for calm and warned against using the attack on Washington to call for a broader crackdown on immigration or to strip away the rights of Afghan residents.
“Using this horrific attack as a pretext to defame and punish every Afghan, every refugee, or every immigrant undermines something very fundamental in our Constitution and in many faiths: the idea that guilt is personal, not inherited or collective,” the Council on American-Islamic Relations said in a statement Friday morning.
U.N. human rights office spokesman Jeremy Laurence told a news briefing in Geneva: “They are entitled to protection under international law, and this must be afforded due process. »
UNHCR spokesperson Eujin Byun said: “When people who need protection arrive in their territory, they must be given a regular asylum procedure. And then they must have access to the territory,” she said, adding that the overwhelming majority of refugees are law-abiding members of the host community.
The term “Third World” originated during the Cold War era to describe a country that was not aligned with the Western NATO alliance, nor with the USSR and the Warsaw Pact. This later evolved into a shorthand to describe economically underdeveloped nations, particularly those with high levels of poverty.
The term has been used to describe several African nations, but until the late 20th century it was also associated with descriptions of China.
Economists and health experts have for years said the phrase is inaccurate, derogatory and outdated. The World Bank and other global institutions no longer use the phrase and some have suggested also avoiding its successor, “developing countries.”
